Artemisia Missile Combat 
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Saint Pyre's Dreaded Gauntlet of Peril From time to time in our local group, we play a few archery games to promote good combat archery techniques. One of favorites is St. Pyres Dreaded Gauntlet of Peril, a four-person team competition.
The layout shown here is not set in stone. It is recommended to take advantage of the natural layout of the site to enhance safety and promote fun. This is a timed event. Archery teams of four unarmored members must pass through the gauntlet maintaining group cohesiveness at all times. Each archer may carry a maximum of 20 arrows/bolts. Teams must pass through all stations in order. Stations 1. Start. The timing commences as the first archer breaks the line between the two start pylons. 2. Snipe the Shieldwall. Four plywood figures are set at a 50' distance from the station. Each figure has a detachable 'haed' that is to be knocked off with a crossbow bolt. Teams may leave the station anytime they wish, but each intact head will result in a 30-second penalty. [the distance to target for this and all other stations may be regulated for difficulty -- we were about 45 feet to get reasonable 'knock-off' rates. The targets needed to be hit in the upper half of the 'head' in order to knock the darn things off] 3. Anybody Home? Each team must perform 3 mass-firings (i.e., everybody shoots at the same time) at a plywood tower with an 10" wide by 24" high arched window with a blanket backstop. A maximum of 12 bolts/arrows should go through the window. A 10-second penalty is assessed for each bolt/arrow that doesn't make it. [A 'mass-firing' was defined as having all the teams bolts in the air at the same time. It was slightly difficult to count the bolts that hit the blanket and bounced out versus the ones that didn't get in -- care is needed in the construction of the blanket backstop] 4. William Tell Tag Team. Teams fire in strict sequence (first number one, then number two, then number three, etc.) until an apple at 15' is knocked from a plywood form of a page, or the page is killed, or the team gives up. If the boy is hit, the station is completed and the team receives a 120-second penalty. If the team leaves the station without hitting the apple or the boy, only a 60-second penalty is assigned. [When we tried this, 4 of 6 teams hit the apple within the first round. The other two teams killed the boy on the first shot] 5. Shieldwall Lofting. Each team must perform 3 mass-firings at a suspended blanket at a distance of 120'. A maximum of 12 bolts/arrows should hit the blanket. A 10-second penalty is assessed for each bolt/arrow that doesn't make it. [Teams averaged 0-2 hits per firing] 6. Sustained Fire. Teams fire freely at a target 40' away for as long as they wish and have bolts to shoot. For each bolt that strikes the target within 2 seconds of the previous strike, 5 seconds is deducted from the overall time. [This turned out to be fairly easy to score. The judge simply stood and counted the number of 'good' hits. For example, if a sequence of three arrows hit the target in quick succession, two bonuses were added to the total. There was no attempt to time exactly two seconds between strikes; it was left simply to the discretion of the judge, and there were no complaints] 7. Finish line. All penalties and bonuses are added/subtracted from the clock time to determine the final score. Judging: Only one judge is needed. He/she carries a stopwatch and a clipboard, with appropriate places to mark penalties. It is easiest if the judge follows the team around the course. The judge is permitted and encouraged to remind the team of the rules and penalties as they run around the course, directing them if needed to the next station. At the start line, the judge starts the stopwatch. At station one, the judge records the number of heads left. At station two, the judge records the arrows that do not go in the window. At station three, the judge records success, failure, or give-up. At station four, the judge records the number of bolts not hitting the blanket. At station five, the judge records the number of hits striking close behind the previous hit. As the team crosses the finish line, the elapsed time is noted and recorded. Judging is easier than it sounds. Contest: Make a few trial runs with various people to get a feel for judging, and to make adjustments for distances. For markers, we used big-ass log nails with re-bar caps on top [perhaps little construction flags could be used?]. Let the participants practice on the targets with the heads that knock off -- they need to be hit in the upper part of the head to get them off. Cut the plastic pipes shorter if needed to make them easier. When you run the contest, run one team through at a time. Just mark the penalties and the raw time, figure out the scores to be announced later at feast or court. After a team finishes, get them to set up the course and glean their arrows. They need something to do to get their adrenaline back down! This contest works very well if you have some crossbows and bolts to loan out. Pleopl *love* to try this, and it is a total blast.
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